The meaning of the freeing of a nech

Question :

The freeing of a neck is a matter which has become unclear for some people and they do not know its meaning, possibly because they have not seen it actually taken place. There is a brother here asking about freeing a neck, especially since we hear of many cases that require a neck to be freed for atonement, and we do not know what a neck is. Is it a person who has been sentenced to death, then pardoned? Or is it an animal?

Answer:

What is meant by freeing a neck is to free a slave that someone owns, either male or female. Allah, Most Glorified, Most High has legislated for His worshippers that when they perform Jihad against the enemies of Islam and defeat them, then their children and women are to be taken as slaves of the Muslims. They may then use them, benefit from them, sell them and dispose freely of them.

The same is the case with the male captives (i.e. the prisoners of war), if any of them are taken captive. The person in authority has the choice: If he wishes, he may kill the male captives and if he wishes, he may enslave them. If he sees some benefit in it, he may free them; and if he wishes, he may enslave them and make them war booty, and if he wishes, he may kill them, if he sees. some benefit in killing them. If he wishes, he may ransom them, for example, if the disbelievers have Muslim captives. Then he may take the Muslim captives from the polytheists and give them their captives, i.e., an exchange of prisoners; or he may take money from them for the freedom of their prisoners, as the Messenger did on the day of (the Battle of) Badr, for he had captives and he killed some of them, and ransomed some of them, and they included An-Nadhr bin Al-Harith, "Uqbah bin Abi Mu'it, whom he killed after the battle was over. As for the remaining captives, he ransomed them, and he ordered the Muslims to ransom them, and to take the ransom from the polytheists equivalent to what their captives had left. He also pardoned some of them.

So it is permissible for the person in authority to pardon them if he sees some benefit in doing so, and it is permissible for him to kill them if he sees some benefit in doing so, and it is permissible for him to enslave them if he sees some benefit in that, and it is permissible for him to ransom them.

These are the bonded necks which the Muslims own when they defeat their enemies; they are slaves for the Muslims. After that, it is for the slave-owner to choose: If he wishes, he may use him. to meet his needs and if he wishes, he may sell him and benefit from his price. Or, if he wishes, he may free him for the sake of Allah, the Almighty, the All-Powerful and that is a voluntary act (of charity); or he may free him as an atonement for (unintentional) killing, or as an atonement for having sexual intercourse during the fast of Ramadhan, or as an atonement for Zihar or as an atonement for an oath, according to the words of the Prophet ﷺ :
"If any Muslim man who frees a Muslim man, for every one of his limbs, Allah will free a limb from the Fire."

Source:
Ibn Baz
Fatawa Islamiyah, Vol. 6 Pages 186-187